Ashridge
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ashridge is an estate and house in Hertfordshire, England; part of the land stretches into Buckinghamshire and it is close to the Bedfordshire border. It is situated in the Chiltern Hills, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, about two miles (3 km) north of Berkhamsted and twenty miles (32 km) north west of London. Surrounding villages include Aldbury, Pitstone, Ivinghoe, Little Gaddesden, Nettleden, and Potten End.
The estate comprises 20 square kilometres (5,000 acres) of woodlands (known as Ashridge Forest), commons and chalk downland which supports a rich variety of wildlife. It also offers a good choice of waymarked walks through outstanding country. The estate is currently owned by the National Trust.
It should not be confused with Asheridge, which is a hamlet about five miles (8 km) south-west, the other side of Berkhamsted.
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[edit] Ashridge Priory
In mediæval times it was the location of an Ashridge Priory founded in 1276 by the Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall, who had a palace here.
[edit] The Egerton Family
From 1604 to 1848 the estate was the property of the Dukes and Earls of Bridgewater (the Egerton family). The Bridgewater Monument was built in memory of the 3rd Duke, Francis Egerton, the "father of inland navigation" with a view to the Grand Union Canal. The monument contains a narrow spiral staircase of 170 steps and is open to the public.
In 1848 the estate passed to the Earls Brownlow, another strand of the Egerton family[1], and then in 1921 it was split, with the land passing to the National Trust, while the house and garden was acquired by the Bonar Law Trust with a view to establishing a College for the Conservative Party[2].
[edit] Bridgewater Monument
The Bridgewater Monument (grid reference SP970131) is a tower on the Ashridge estate, built in 1832 in memory of Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, "the father of inland navigation". It is 108 feet (33 m) tall, with 170 steps inside, designed by Sir Jeffry Wyattville in a Doric style. It overlooks the village of Aldbury and the Grand Union Canal.
[edit] Ashridge Business School
In 1959 Ashridge College was re-launched to provide management training, and is now Ashridge Business School.
[edit] Use in Films
Ashridge Common has been featured many times in film and television series due to its distinction as an area of natural beauty. It was the location for the film Danny, the Champion of the World based on the book by Roald Dahl. Some of the Ashridge Estate have been used for filming parts of the Harry Potter films, including The Goblet of Fire. The Ashridge House, which is now Ashridge Business School has been featured in films such as The Dirty Dozen.
[edit] Golf Club
Part of the estate became Ashridge Golf Club in 1932, and had Henry Cotton as its club professional in the late 1930s, including his most successful year 1937.
[edit] References
[edit] Further reading
- Coult, Douglas (1980). A Prospect of Ashridge. Chichester: Phillimore. ISBN 0-85033-360-1.
- Sanecki, Kay (1996). Ashridge - A Living History. Phillimore. ISBN 1-86077-020-7.
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